Introduction: The
New Age of Transparency

By mid-2009, evidence was emerging that the trust and wealth management
industries were adopting to the new age of transparency instigated
by the OECD countries in response to the global financial metldown
and subsequent economic crisis. Participants in a survey conducted
by the Society of Estate and Trust Practitioners agreed that three
key trends would develop in the industry over the course of the
coming years.

These include:

The end of secrecy will mean families will seek out advisors
and trustees who can master global tax advice. Economic conditions
will mean tax competition between countries will increase and
the distinction between offshore and onshore will disappear;

The industry will modernise its practices to attract a wider
audience; increasing its market share through adopting best
practices in investment management and enhancing compliance
processes to reduce risk;

Products and services will continue to be combined together
to create new revenue opportunities for wealth structuring professionals.
Trust and Estate Planning practitioners will have to be increasingly
innovative to expand the number of strategies in its ‘toolbox’
to create bespoke solutions in higher value structures.

Shortly after the results of this survey were published, STEP released
figures which indicated that sentiment was improving amongst practitioners,
with 41% of the organization's members predicting that trust and
estate business would "improve" or "significantly
improve" over the year ahead. This was almost double the number
that held this view earlier in the year.

STEP Chief Executive David Harvey said: “The move to positivity
among STEP members is a great indicator that, despite the economic
downturn and the regulatory environment providing new challenges
for trust and estate practitioners, the industry is looking to the
future with renewed confidence. Our members are looking to embrace
the opportunities afforded by the needs of international families
to plan and to be compliant on an increasingly global, rather than
national, basis.

Offshore Trusts News

Ukrainian Corporate Tax Reform Plans ShelvedFriday 14/12/2018Ukraine has reportedly postponed consideration of a bill that would reform the country's corporate tax system to shift the burden of tax from company profits to distributions.

UK To Shutter Second Home Tax Avoidance 'Loophole'Friday 9/11/2018The UK Government has announced its intention to tackle the use of a commercial property tax (business rates) exemption, intended only for small businesses, by second-home owners to avoid paying residential property tax (Council Tax) on those homes.

UK Announces Digital Tax, Corporate Tax Reforms In New BudgetFriday 2/11/2018The UK's 2018 Budget includes changes to tax rules for companies, and notably for multinational groups to conform with the EU's Anti Tax Avoidance Directive. Most significantly, the UK has decided to move ahead of the EU in announcing that it will apply a tax on the turnover of certain digital businesses.

EU Tells Italy To Revise 2019 Budget PlanFriday 26/10/2018On October 23, 2018, the European Commission issued a request to the Italian Government that it revise its draft budgetary plan for 2019 because it breaches European Union fiscal rules.

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